In Jasmine Coleman's ninth-grade Earth Science classroom at a STEM-focused Title I public charter school, students spent months exploring Earth's interconnected systems through hands-on investigations of soil on their campus. As their year-long journey culminated, eighteen student teams faced a complex challenge: designing advocacy campaigns to address the environmental and social impacts of lithium-ion battery production—an issue carying particular weight given the emergence of lithium mining operations in the students’ own regional backyard.

The transformation from academics to action began when one group of seven students engaged in Imagining Preferred Futures, envisioning a world where their peers would be better informed about lithium-ion battery safety and disposal. Rather than simply dreaming of awareness, they pictured concrete change in how their school community understood and managed electronic waste.

This vision sparked intensive Planning for Co-produced Impact. The students researched their approach strategically, drawing on their knowledge of Earth systems and mining practices to identify key concerns, including air and water pollution, carbon emissions from manufacturing, and fire hazards. They recognized that lasting change would require collaboration beyond their group, so they planned partnerships with other student teams and considered perspectives from multiple parties—the student body, campus educators, and industry leaders.

Taking Agentic Action transformed their careful planning into a tangible reality. They launched a social media channel, taking on Artist roles to create cohesive branding and graphic design that reinforced their messages, while simultaneously acting as Advocates to build an online community encouraging discussions about mitigation strategies. Demonstrating remarkable initiative, they expanded beyond digital outreach by collaborating with another group to propose an on-campus e-waste disposal program. When they transitioned into Implementer|Builder|Maker roles, their proposal materialized into a permanent e-waste disposal container featuring their campaign logo, installed with Jasmine's facilitation.

Their commitment to Leaving a Legacy ensured their impact extended beyond the semester's end. Taking on Solutions Steward roles, the students developed maintenance protocols for both their social media presence and the physical disposal program, ensuring sustained impact in both online and campus communities.

The students' comprehensive approach demonstrated how the Action-Oriented Pedagogy (AOP) phases could work cyclically to create lasting change, inspiring other groups in Jasmine's class to pursue similarly ambitious initiatives that connected scientific learning with real-world environmental action.